John had a bad day
by Humunanunga
Summary: John had a bad day. Karkat found him and decided to console him.
1. Chapter 1

**John had a bad day.  
**John Egbert x Karkat Vantas  
Rated K.

It has been a rough day.  
Everyone has those days at least once.  
Those days when since waking up, everything seems to have turned for the worse, and everything seems to suddenly hold deep-seated grudges, and not even anything necessarily had to happen to give that impression. But there the cloud forms and broods and follows all day, for no apparent reason, and every worry, every most trivial misfortune, its weight all amplifies without any excuse to. The weight of everything even remotely wrong suddenly gives a smack across the face and walks off.  
The Heir of Breath sits in a corner alone on such a day, crying. He feels so alone and so helpless, and he only wants to scream it all out. But no. He keeps quiet and hiccups through sobs in the hopes that no one can hear him.  
But Karkat hears.  
The Knight of Blood happens to notice John in the corner of an empty block as he passes by.  
"WHAT'S WRONG?"  
John realizes Karkat's presence and sniffles into his knees, attempting to wipe his face and pull his hood further down to hide the fact that he has been crying.  
"n-nothing..."  
But Karkat knows better. He sits next to John and pulls him into his arms while shyly looking away. He mutters.  
"CAN'T BULLSHIT ME, DUMBASS..."  
Which, in Karkat speech, translates to "I WORRY ABOUT YOU. I LOVE YOU."  
Karkat strokes John on the back and shoulders.  
"...COME ON. TELL ME WHAT'S WRONG."  
John can barely speak, not even into Karkat's chest, for the fact that crying has rendered his voice to a shaky mess.  
"j-just... ev-v-verything. everything is wr-rong, a-and... i-i-i-i-i-i don't even kn-now!"  
Speaking at all triggers the tears to erupt again.  
Karkat continues to stroke him and lowers his head onto John's, whose hood falls back as he does so.  
"SO YOU'VE HAD THOSE DAYS TOO, THEN. I THINK EVERYONE HAS THOSE DAYS. FOR NO GOOD REASON, JUST... EVERYTHING DECIDES TO SMACK YOU IN THE FACE AT ONCE FOR NO GOOD REASON BUT TO LAUGH AT YOUR EXPENSE..."  
Karkat pauses. John's arms have been folded against the front of Karkat with his hands curled inward, but now they cannot help but grip onto Karkat. The long hood, in windblown motions, wraps around them both like a scarf or a tail.  
"I GUESS... WHAT I'M TRYING TO SAY IS... I JUST WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT YOU'RE NOT ALONE, OKAY?"  
Karkat further envelopes John. When he repositions himself, John's heart skips out of uncertainty and unpreparedness for any sort of change at that moment, but then Karkat's knees rest lightly against either side of his ribcage, one leg over both of his, and he presses himself deeper into Karkat's sweater.  
"IT'S OKAY, JOHN, I'M RIGHT HERE... I'M RIGHT HERE."  
Karkat sits there in silence for a while, without pause in petting him or embracing him. He listens with closed eyes to John's breath in his shirt. He feels his sweater soak through. He waits for John to have let it all out and for the violent heaves to die down to slow breaths.  
John finally sits there, having cried himself out, eyes still shut, feeling Karkat all around him. His face continues to rest on Karkat's chest and feels it expand and contract with respiration. He feels Karkat's arms and legs still wrapped all around him. He feels the side of Karkat's face and his neck in his hair. He lets out a long sigh.  
"...YOU FEEL BETTER NOW?"  
After a few seconds, Karkat feels John nod his head slightly with a small tug at his sweater.  
"ALRIGHT... HOW ABOUT WE TRY TO REMEDY THAT FROWN, NOW."  
John gives another small nod and moves his hands around Karkat for a soft hug. Karkat returns the gesture.


	2. Chapter 2

"...HOW ABOUT COCOA. HOW'S THAT SOUND."  
John gives yet another small nod.  
"OKAY... COME ON. I'M GONNA PICK YOU UP."  
John complies and lifts himself off the ground like a balloon. He wraps himself around Karkat. Karkat, careful to support him even though he can make himself practically weightless, slowly stands up with John in his arms. He carries him down the hall, head on each other's shoulders, until they reach the counter. For the most part, Karkat can manage to keep John in one arm while reaching for a cup and other items without too much trouble. He also finds a wash cloth left out from the nearby hygiene facility.  
John does not pay much attention to what Karkat looks at or reaches for. Crying wore him out. His face remains buried in Karkat's sweater, which has already begun to dry.  
Karkat takes the wet, steamy cloth and sets it across his face. A little too warm. He runs it under cold water for a moment, squeezes the excess water out and lays it across again. There we go.  
"HEY JOHN. I'M GONNA SET YOU DOWN ON THE COUNTER FOR A SECOND."  
"...hmmm?"  
Karkat gently sets John down, who reluctantly lets go of Karkat's back but loosely holds onto the front of his sweater. Karkat takes off John's square-rimmed corrective lenses.  
"what are you..."  
John suddenly feels a hand on on side of his face and a warm, wet cloth streaking across the other side.  
"I JUST THOUGHT I'D CLEAN YOU UP REAL FAST WHILE THE COCOA IS UNDER PREPARATION."  
"oh, okay... thanks... uh, well, for everything actually..."  
"HEY, IT'S WHAT I'M HERE FOR. YOU DON'T NEED TO THANK ME."  
Karkat examines John's puffy-eyed, red-cheeked face after a minute. Satisfied with his job, he then dries John's face with the corner of his sleeve, immediately followed by putting John's lenses back on.  
Karkat wraps John's hands around the freshly made cup of warm cocoa, complete with marshmallows and whipped cream. John takes several small sips while Karkat keeps a watchful eye over him with a hand on his knee, attentive of his eyes. John cannot finish more than half of the cup, though. He sets it down in his lap and leans forward. His eyes begin to sink.  
"...YOU DONE?"  
"...yeah, i think so... sorry..." The words crawl out lazily.  
"NO, DON'T WORRY ABOUT IT."  
Karkat pets John's face for reassurance, takes the cup from John's hands and sets it down on the counter. He sees the sleep perching on John's eyelids, takes him into his arms again and carries him back into the respite block Karkat set up for himself previously. He turns off the lights and sets them both down on the couch.  
Karkat encourages John with his hands to lean down and lay over him. John wastes no time in doing so and going limp. Karkat grabs a down comforter from the floor beside them and lays it over them both. Karkat finds human sleep material something of an acquired taste, but John immediately welcomes the cozyness. Karkat wraps one arm back around John under the cozy blanket and pets John's head with the other.  
John lets himself take comfort in the care for him Karkat shows. He nuzzles close and mumbles something almost indiscernible before he falls fast asleep. Karkat looks down and lets a smile peek out of the corner of his mouth.  
"...I KNOW. SAME TO YOU."


End file.
